Independa has unveiled its Artemis system of sensors to allow for remote monitoring of seniors' vital data in the cloud.

Independa, a provider of remote-monitoring
technology for the elderly, has introduced Artemis, a system of sensors that
connect wirelessly to a cloud platform to monitor elderly patients' health and
activities.
The
company's goal is for wireless technology to allow seniors to live as
independently as possible in their homes or in assisted living.

Independa
demonstrated the new platform at the 2011 mHealth Summit from Dec. 5-7 in
National Harbor, Md. The company will beta-test Artemis in February and launch
it commercially in the second quarter of 2012.

The
platform will connect sensors to monitor vital signs, safety and home
conditions and transmit them to Independa's Caregiver Web App cloud platform.
The Caregiver Web app converts the raw data into information that caregivers
and doctors can evaluate to improve care.
Artemis, named
after a Greek goddess of protection, allows caregivers to keep track
of a patient's living environment as well as vital health data, according to
Independa CEO Kian Saneii. "It can grow with a person's needs over
time," Saneii told eWEEK.
Caregivers
can program Artemis' sensors to monitor temperature, blood pressure, weight,
pulse and blood sugar. Sensors can also keep track of activities such as pill
dispensing and toilet flushing and environmental data such as room temperature
and carbon monoxide levels.

Doctors
or caregivers set the "threshold" for the level at which they'd want
to be alerted, such as a particular room temperature or blood pressure level.
The
platform can notify doctors about only the data they specify rather than all
readings that Artemis records, according to Saneii. "We notify you when
something isn't quite right, not of all the data that's happened," he
explained.
Independa
also offers an Angela touch-screen social-engagement platform that provides
handheld entertainment for patients to reduce social isolation at home. Through
Angela, seniors can access photo albums, games and puzzles as well as chat with
friends using Facebook.
In
addition, patients and caregivers can view health metrics reporting from
Artemis sensors and the Caregiver Web app.
Artemis
integrates with a wireless hub from Boston
Life Labs, which develops plug-and-play wireless telehealth products. The
sensors transmit data to the hub using Bluetooth and RF technology, and then
transfer data to the cloud application using a cellular or WiFi connection,
Saneii explained.
The
platform was designed to provide access to "all kinds of sensors,"
he said. The platform will provide flexibility and scalability over
time, Saneii added.
"It's
critical to know if Mom didn't get out of bed, left the front door open for two
hours or forgot to lower the thermostat," Saneii said.
A
glucometer may have a cellular chip, or a scale could have built-in WiFi,
Saneii noted, and these devices would use Artemis to transfer data to the
Independa cloud platform.
Storing
the data in the cloud allows for easier integration with other data platforms
than if the data traveled from server to server, Saneii noted.
"The
cloud is a repository and the brain behind getting things done," he said.
Remote
health monitoring is a growing trend in health care that allows caregivers to
monitor patients from their home or areas where they can't physically get to a
doctor.
At
the 2011 mHealth Summit, Verizon
also demonstrated a cloud-based care-management platform from Entra Health
Systems, which makes a Bluetooth-enabled glucometer.
Meanwhile,
a remote-monitoring software vendor, MedApps, offers applications that transfer
patient data to its CloudCare platform.

Brian T. Horowitz is a freelance technology and health writer as well as a copy editor. Brian has worked on the tech beat since 1996 and covered health care IT and rugged mobile computing for eWEEK since 2010. He has contributed to more than 20 publications, including Computer Shopper, Fast Company, FOXNews.com, More, NYSE Magazine, Parents, ScientificAmerican.com, USA Weekend and Womansday.com, as well as other consumer and trade publications. Brian holds a B.A. from Hofstra University in New York.